Under the Water
by snowstormcat
Summary: After her father dies, Reina spends her time working at her aunt's bar... until she's kidnapped, that is. Now she's embarking on a journey in which she may never return, and may discover the secrets she would have never believed before. Link/OC
1. Prologue

"Reina, sweetie, would you mind putting these on the shelf over there? It'd be a great help," her father asked her quickly, quite roughly pushing a wooden box filled with baby dolls with red, button covered dresses and velvet bows on their yarn covered heads. He turned back his head to look at the long line of customers waiting to buy toys, bread, and books; one man even carried a brand new pair of boots. Papa always made sure to sell a variety of things so you always knew the place to go for what you needed, "Ava's General Store", for that used to be her mother's name.

"You mean the one by the hairbrushes?" she naturally questioned back, taking the heavy box into her hands.

"Yes, yes. Thank you, sweetheart," he replied, kissing her head and giving her a smile, and then rushed back behind a counter to let the people make their purchases.

Reina shifted the box slightly into a more comfortable position and shuffled across the room. Standing next to the chestnut colored shelf, she placed the box on the floor with a _thump_ and began to carefully arrange the new dolls in neat rows next to the other toys, such as wooden play swords and elaborate puzzles, making sure every doll's bow was straight.

This is what she did most days. Her father didn't have many employees, he claimed he didn't need them, so Reina was the one to help him keep things in check, and she enjoyed it.

Her father built the store years ago, when she was just a little girl. He named it "Ava's", in honor of his late wife, who died while Reina was born.

Reina would sometimes wonder what it would be like to have a mother. She had her aunt to braid her hair and to tell her about all that girl stuff, but somehow, she knew, having her mother for that would be so much different. Ever so often she'd see girls come into the store with their mothers. They'd giggle at the dresses they saw and they'd fiddle with the lip paint, trying to figure out which color would look best on each other. Peeking out from behind a rack of clothes would be Reina, her cheeks pink with jealousy, wondering what they were thinking.

She actually had no idea what her mother looked like. Her father had no pictographs of her and he seemed so sad when he talked about it. Reina didn't want to hurt him, so it could only be left to her imagination, so she thought of a beautiful woman. A lady whose hair flowed down in waves around her shoulders, the same chestnut brown with light, golden streaks as Reina herself. _Her eyes must be blue_, Reina would always think. Her eyes were not brown like her father's. _And her face must be smooth and flawless, _she decided for sure. She didn't favor the many freckles that dotted her nose and cheeks.

Reina finished placing the rest of the toys on the shelf, and picked up the box off the floor to bring back to her father. Just as she took her first step, the door to the shop burst open and slammed into the wall loudly, making everyone jump in surprise and turn to the commotion. Three strange and definitely not human creatures spilled into the room only a moment later, snarling and glaring at the terrified people. Before her eyes, just about every person in the room began scattering around the room at once, making a break to the door. A few even fled to the windows and flung themselves outside into the sea water.

The creatures snorted like pigs, they even looked like them with their snouts and curly tails. Their dark skin was tattooed with light swirls. They each swung a fire lit lantern in their left paw, although they really didn't need it and a sharp spear with blood red cloth tied behind the sharp metal in their right. They wore blue pants and bracelets and helmets of gold and different shades of green. One of the most noticeable features would be the large skull necklace each wore. Reina recognized them to be moblins.

Reina ducked behind one of the racks. _How did they get here? They couldn't of possibly walked here from the docks, could they? The store was in the middle of town, unless... unless they didn't get here by __boat. _

One of the moblins pressed his nose to the ground on the other side of the rack she was using to hide, and she heard him sniffing the ground like a dog. She felt sweat appear on her brow and she held her breath, trying not to alert the monster, but feared that her heartbeat was so loud he could hear it.

_Okay, if I'm fast enough, maybe I can make it to the door...no! It's right behind me, I'll never make it! Maybe..._

Her heart pattered as a moblin head peeked around the corner. Her muscles turned to ice, and when its eyes suddenly lite up with something she couldn't comprehend, she swore her heart stopped beating completely.

It snorted some kind of message to the other monsters, which resulted in the other two huffing back, and it attempted to pick Reina up with its dirty paws. Reina scooted back against the rack, hitting her head slightly as it leaned forward, but then she watched with surprise as its nasty yellow eyes suddenly crossed and it rolled onto its side, revealing her father holding a long, wooden weapon she guessed to be some sort of club.

"Papa!" she cried, and threw herself forward into his arms.

"Reina," he told her, pulling her farther back into the corner of the room, "Stay here, no matter what happens. Understand? I don't want you getting hurt."

She nodded her head in obedience and watched him lift his weapon to the nearest moblin, its weapon also ready.

Lurching forward, her father beat the weapon against the beast's thick skin, but barely injured, it pushed him away with amusement towards the other moblin, who hit him forcefully into the other direction with the dull end of its spear.

The moblin was ready to push him again, set on continuing their little game, but as it went to stab him, her father parried its attack with a quick leap to the left and beat the stick into the side of the monster's head, making it stumble around before collapsing onto the wooden floor.

Turning to the other moblin, they exchanged blows until her father hit the ugly pig hard in the snout and it bent over in pain.

Unnoticed by her father, the third moblin, the one that tried to grab her at first, had awakened back to consciousness. He readied his weapon and prepared to strike the back of her father's head.

"Papa!" she cried out, trying to warn him, but a moment too late. As soon as he turned to see what was the matter, the moblin spear slashed him across the chest, sending her father flying across the room and into a wall of books, that all toppled over him and everywhere else in the area.

"Papa!" she cried out again, seeing his eyes closed. _No..._

The monsters ambled over to her, snorting happily that they could now kidnap her without anybody in the way, but failed to notice the several men making their way through the door.

To the moblins' surprise, two men tackled the first monster to the ground. It seemed to explode into a cloud of purple mist, and the other two backed away from the men, seeing clearly they were outnumbered. The group efficiently beat the moblins to the ground, and met the same fate.

Now that the moblins were out of the way, Reina dashed past the rescuers and to the other side of the store. She flung the books off her father's body. He still laid there with his eyes closed.

"Papa?" she tried, "Papa!"

She shook him a little and he opened his eyes slowly.

"Papa," she sighed with relief

"Reina," he coughed, pulling her closer to his face, "Follow your heart, Reina. You're a special girl,"

With this he took her hand in his and placed a silver necklace into her palm. On the chain was an odd blue crystal with a silver fish in the middle. _Like a fish swimming in the sea._

"Papa, why?" she questioned as he closed her fingers around the necklace.

"You're a special girl," he repeated, leaning back against the books.

"Papa!" she shook him again, only he didn't stir.

"Papa, stop! This isn't funny! Papa!" she yelled, wet tears rolling down her cheeks and onto his blood soaked tunic.

A man came up from behind her and knelt down after seeing the unconscious man. He frowned and pressed his tan fingers to a spot on the side of her father's neck.

After a moment, a look of sadness crossed his face. He stood up and looked into Reina's eyes. Her heart began to beat rapidly as she realized.

"I- I'm sorry." he whispered quietly, standing up to leave her alone to mourn her father.

She pressed her face into the crook of her father's neck for what seemed like ages. When she finally lifted her head, she noticed she was alone in the dark store. The floor was cluttered with fallen shelves and debris. The books underneath her had left pink marks on her legs.

"Please come back papa! I love you!" she cried, her pleas echoing off the walls, "Din, help me! Farore, Nayru!"

She laid her head back down "I love helping you take care of the shop, Papa! You mean everything to me. I don't know what to do without you."

She ran her hand across his forehead, over his closed eyes, and rested her hand on his cheek.

"But papa...please... if you have to go... please... tell mama that I love her," she whispered into his neck, and with wet eyes, drifted off into a deep sleep.

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><p><strong>Review please? :)<strong>


	2. Chapter 1

_One year later_

The cafe bar was as busy as usual. Reina looked at the men and women speaking over their mugs of coffee. It filled the room with a buzz of conversation and the often clink of cups and plates. Reina couldn't see an empty seat in the room. The bar's beverages and friendly atmosphere brought in people from all over the island of Windfall, and even more when sailors decided to dock for the night and wanted a bite to eat. It _was _the only restaurant on the island after all.

Her aunt keeps the place running. Every night you'd see her there, busy like always. Reina watched her from behind the counter, she bounded around the room, passing out drinks to her customers with a smile on her face, making sure to say 'thank you'. She was determined to make every customer feel welcome, even if it ran her into the ground. Reina didn't know why she did that to herself, maybe because she felt bad for never being there for her brother before he died. She wanted his shop to be special, a welcome place again.

Reina remembered the night her father died like it only happened a moment before. Her aunt shaking her awake and holding her in her arms, tears streaming down her face. Her aunt explained that there would be a funeral the next day and how she was welcome to come and stay with her if she wanted. She said everything would be okay, but it wouldn't. She lost the person that meant the most to her in the world, but she knew her aunt meant well.

Not a wrinkle could be seen on her aunt's round face. She was so young to have to take care of the bar with only a teenage girl to help out, but the money was a necessity. Reina's grandfather sat sick at home that very moment, like always. He needed all kinds of medications and potions and herbs just to get through the day, and not all of them you can get for just a handful of rupees.

"Gillian! Another round here, please!" a man's voice called over the noise, startling Reina from her thoughts. Her aunt hurried around the counter, pushing Reina to the side so she could fill three mugs with a thick black liquid. She set them on the counter in front of Reina.

"Reina, don't just stand there! Take those over to Kane and his friends, will you?" she ordered, wiping her hands on her white apron, "Hurry, other people are waiting."

Reina nodded her head silently, looking around for a tray to set them on.

"There are no more," Aunt Gillian said, seeming to read her thoughts, "You'll have to carry them."

Her aunt turned away from her as another voice called out.

"Wait, what if I drop them?" Reina asked nervously, trying to hold all three cups at once. It wasn't working.

"Don't," her aunt called out.

Reina sighed and slipped her fingers through the handles on two of the mugs and managing to grasp the third with her fingertips. _Stop being stupid,_ she thought, _Just bring them their drinks._

She padded carefully over to the men, making sure not to spill, and set the mugs lightly on the table. Kane wore his usual light green tunic over a striped blue one and looked up with his dark eyes. The other two men Reina didn't recognize.

"Here, Kane," she said, pushing the glasses to each person. They smiled and one tipped his hat at her.

"That's a nice necklace you have," one of Kane's friends complemented. Reina looked down at her silver necklace, the blue stone just as mysterious as it was the night her father gave it to her. "Where did you get it from?" he asked her, "I bet my girlfriend would want something like that."

"Oh, um.. just, someone gave it to me, like, a while ago, so..." she stumbled quickly, hiding the charm behind the cloth of her dress. She felt the old memories flooding back. _Don't start crying!_ she yelled internally, _Don't be a baby! If you cry in front of all these people, I swear..._

"A while ago... so like a few minutes ago or something? Are they still here?"

"Ah...ah...Uh, no. No, it was a few years ago. A year, actually," they looked at her with confused faces.

"I- I have to go!"

She walked quickly back around the counter once more, and ducked down, letting the tears fall from her eyes like a flood.

Ever since her father died, she tried to stay happy. It was what he would have wanted, what her mother would have wanted, but she couldn't bring herself to. That's natural though, her aunt told her once when she explained how she felt. It's natural to grieve the ones you've lost, but she didn't even enjoy things the way she used to. She remembered the warm nights when musicians would play in the park. There were flutes, harps, and violins, she would sit with her father and listen for hours, but now she spent that time in the cafe bar, cleaning the tables and floors so she could help her aunt work the next day.

Reina eventually came out from behind the counter, once she was positive there wasn't a sign on her face that she'd been crying, and watched as the number of guests slowly went down as they left for their homes until it was just she and her aunt.

"Reina,"

Reina looked up to see her aunt with a small, sympathetic smile on her lips.

"It's late. How about we go home and just clean this up in the morning?"

"Um, Aunt Gillian, are you okay?" Reina asked, "That's kinda gross, and it'll be way worst in the morning to clean up."

"I know, but I'll worry about that then. We could come in early so we have time before anyone arrives," she reasoned

"Um..."

"You know what?" she said playfully, "We're leaving. Come on! I'm your aunt, no questions."

She quickly blew out the candles that were placed around the room and the two stepped outside of the cafe bar. Aunt Gillian locked the door up and stuck the silver key into the pocket of her blue dress.

"Good evening!" a voice greeted from behind them, and they turned around. A woman in an orange dress stood at the bottom of the stairs.

"Good evening yourself," Aunt Gillian replied, "I was just locking up the cafe, sorry"

"That's quite alright. I didn't come for a drink. I just wanted to have a word with you, dear," the woman smiled.

"Yes, of course," Gillian said, descending down the stairs to meet the woman. Reina stepped to follow.

The woman stopped her, "Uh, privately, dear. It's an important matter."

Gillian looked up at her, "It's fine, Reina. Just stay up there."

"Okay," Reina said. She watched as the woman in the orange dress stood on her toes to murmur something into her ear. Her aunt listened closely, and the expression on her face said that whatever the woman was telling her, it was shocking, but when her eyes met with Reina's, it quickly disappeared and her eyes flicked away.

The lady in the orange dress backed away, gave a quick goodbye and a nod to her aunt, and walked along the dirt road, not bothering to spare Reina another glance.

Reina descended down the steps and stopped next to her aunt, "What was that all about?"

Gillian met her eyes, "Oh, nothing you need to worry about right now. Let's just get you home."

Her aunt began quickly striding along the road, away from the woman and towards the docks. Reina ran to catch up with her.

"Well, obviously it's important if I couldn't even hear what she said, Aunt Gillian!"

"Reina, we're not going to talk about it anymore. I already told you, it's nothing you need to worry about."

Reina shut her mouth and followed silently as the docks came into view. A little white sailboat with a blue star on the sail bobbed in the water at the end of the dock. It was the only boat still there with the exception of the ship shop that sailed around the island about this time every night. Her aunt stood by the boat.

"You hop on," she said, "I'll untie the boat."

Reina obliged, stepping over the side and onto the boat. Her aunt untangled the rope from the pole and followed, and once the sail was up, began moving toward a little island on the horizon.

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><p>Aunt Gillian tapped on the wooden door with her knuckles. They just tied up the boat to a small dock only a few feet away from the house they were facing. It belonged to Aunt Gillian and her father, or in other words, Reina's grandfather.<p>

It was the only house on the island, but there wasn't room for another anyways. The home was literally only a yard or so away from the rock edges on the island on three different sides. In the front there was only a small walkway and a dock with just enough room for their sailboat on the very end.

The door in front of them opened to reveal a short man with a gray beard and a pair of glasses covering his crinkly eyes. A tiny smile formed on his wrinkled face and he waved them inside with a happy chuckle, making sure to give them a hug before they stepped inside the dwelling.

"Hi, grandpa," Reina greeted the old man, bending down to give him another hug while Gillian closed the door.

"Hey, girly! You're here early tonight, was the cafe bar not as crowded?"

"Just as crowded as usual," she told him, pulling back from the hug, "We didn't clean the bar after everyone left. Aunt Gillian said we're gonna clean up early tomorrow morning."

He looked to where his daughter was standing by the door, "What's the reason for that nonsense?"

"Dad, I need to talk to you," Gillian stated bluntly, giving him a look.

"Okay."

"Alone."

They both looked at Reina.

"It has something to do with that lady that talked to you earlier, doesn't it?" Reina mumbled.

Her grandfather looked worried, "What lady?"

"_No one,_" Aunt Gillian told him, her eyes flickered to Reina for a fraction of a second and then back to her father.

"Why don't you get ready for bed, Reina?" he suggested, turning her around to face the direction of her bedroom, "I'll tell you a story tonight about my sailin' days."

Although hesitant, she entered her room, and after closing the door, she leaned heavily against it. It was so obvious they were talking about her, so why was it such a big secret? She was about to make way to the brown chest in the corner to find her night gown, but stopped when she heard a murmur in the room outside her door.

"Have you heard whats been happening?" she barely made out her aunt say.

Reina pressed her ear closer to the door, trying to hear the conversation. _Maybe now I'll find out what's so important._

"What do you mean?"

She sighed, "The kidnappings! You really haven't heard anything about it?"

She let out another sigh. He must of shook his head.

"These..._monsters_ kidnapped Mila and Maggie. You know, the girls that live near my shop?"

She paused, then continued, "I don't know if it could happen, but _what if_ the monsters kidnap Reina too?"

"That won't happen,"

"Well, she's almost been kidnapped before! If it wasn't for Tod, she would have been! My brother, your _only_ _son_, was killed by those monsters. I think it's possible it could happen again!" her aunt explained.

Reina sucked in a breath as she remembered the night.

"She's thirteen now. She's much stronger and can take care of herself. If..."

"Those other girls are the same age as her! Reina would never stand a chance."

Reina flinched at the harsh words, and there was a long silence. Her grandfather was thinking.

"We'll leave. Leave this island. We bring all our rupees and anything else we need, and when the attacks stop we'll return," he told her simply, she even heard him grabbing stuff off the counters.

"Dad, you're ill! You can't go around traveling to different islands! Besides, you don't understand. These attacks are happening all across the Great Sea, not just on Windfall! We..."

"We do what?" he asked angrily, "If there's no way to escape it, then what are we supposed to do?"

Her aunt stopped talking, taken aback.

After a few moments, she spoke again, "I think she should stay here with you," she told him, her voice much calmer, "She'll be hidden, and you need someone to be with you during the day."

"I don't need someone to watch me..."

"Then I need you to watch her," she said, "Please."

"Fine," he agreed, "I'm gonna check on Reina. You should probably go to bed yourself."

Reina peeled herself away from the door and threw her nightgown over her head. She had just got it on when he knocked on the door.

"Come in," she said, and he opened the door.

"All ready for bed?" he asked, acting like nothing happened.

"Yeah," she replied, going over to give him a hug.

He hugged her back, "Guess what? Tomorrow you get a break. You get to spend the day with me,"

"Okay," she answered and climbed onto her bed. Her grandfather pulled the dark red blanket up to her neck and kissed her forehead.

"I've got a good story tonight," he said, "About the time I defeated the largest squid in the Great Sea,"

"That's alright grandpa," she said, and a sad look crossed his face, "I'm kinda tired tonight, so I just want to go to bed."

"Well, alright," he said, standing up, "Goodnight, girly."

"Night grandpa," she replied, nuzzling her head into her pillow.

When she heard the door shut, she closed her eyes, a million questions running through her mind.

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><p><strong><strong>Big thanks to <em>Ten ways to spoil dinner, Sale el sol, <em>and_ hollychristina _for reviewing the last chapter!_ :)_****


	3. Chapter 2

Reina began to stir from her slumber, her eyelids flickering open.

Her bedroom was dark, suggesting it was still night, or at least early morning. Reina breathed steadily, glancing around the small bedroom. She briefly wondered what had awakened her, for she wasn't one to awake this early in the morning. All was silent, except... Reina closed her eyes and listened closely. Soft footsteps could be heard patrolling outside her door and she could feel her heartbeat quicken and pound against her chest. Suddenly her aunt's words from the night before flickered across her mind like a flash of lightening, making her body go tense and awake. Could the monsters know she was here?

She pulled the patterned quilt that lay over her above her head in vain, as if that was any such hiding place.

She listened to the creak of her door as it opened and the footsteps that were pacing got slightly louder, stopping at her bedside.

"She's still asleep," a familiar voice stated to another person outside the door, and a wave of relief washed over her.

"Alright, I'm going now," her aunt's voice replied to Reina's grandfather, "Whatever you do, don't let anyone inside while I'm gone. I want to be on the safe side."

"I'll keep her safe, Gilly."

"I know."

The door shut quietly, and after a few moments, Reina pulled the blankets off her body and set her feet on the cold wooden floor. She padded over to the door with out a sound.

"Bye, dad. I'll see you tonight," Reina just barely heard Aunt Gillian say, and the front door creaked open and shut.

Silently, Reina crossed the room and knelt by the window, unlatching it then peering out into the moon lite, tropic morning. Her aunt, dressed in her usual work day attire, consisting of a plain, solid colored dress and a white apron, and her hair pinned up in a neat bun, was on the small dock situated on the front of the island. Her aunt stepped onto the miniscule vessel, and after untying the rope and pulling it into the boat, began to shrink as she neared the silhouette of an island with a windmill rising above the rest of the land.

Reina sat there for some time, debating with herself internally. She wanted to get to the island, even though it was probably (if her aunts words were true) stupid and reckless. If there really were monsters out there, it would be dangerous, for sure, but she needed to know about the kidnappings; what her aunt wasn't saying to her. She had to prove she wasn't the little girl she was just a year ago.

_I'm going to Windfall, _she determined, looking at the island's silhouette against the horizon, _I just have to figure out how..._

Still peering out her window, she recognized a long boat with an excessive amount of items piled on the top. It was traveling and looping around the small islands that were scattered around the ever so popular Windfall, obviously with no where in-particular to go.

A smirk lit up her face as an idea struck her. She turned around, opening a wooden chest in the corner of the room and pulled out the first article of clothing she found, a casual, lavender colored dress. She changed into it quickly, then pulled her hair up with a ribbon she found in her chest. She reached down once more, grabbing a small brown sack that jingled as she stuck it into a pocket on the front of her dress. Rupees. Just in case.

She grabbed a light-colored shawl that had been hanging on her bed post and wrapped it around her shoulders, then turned towards the window, but stopped. Should she leave a note for her grandfather, should he not worry? She shook her head. No, he would worry none the less. What was she thinking? Besides, she would be back this night, if not sooner, so there was no need.

She climbed out into the salty early morning air and pulled the window shut behind her.

She hurried over to the empty dock and looked for the boat. _Perfect,_ she thought. It was just approaching.

Opening her mouth to holler out for his attention as she usually saw her aunt do when she needed supplies from the ship shop, she quickly scolded herself at her stupidity. She closed her mouth. Her grandfather would surely hear her yell, then this would all be over before it even started.

Glancing around for an alternative, she saw a lantern that was left on one of the poles on the dock. She picked it up and lit it hastily. Now he was practically parallel with the island. She raised the lantern above her head as far as her arms would reach and waved it back and forth. Begging the goddesses that he would see her, and he did almost as soon as she raised her fist.

The boat pulled up to the dock in front of her, a strange painting of a man's face slapped on the side along with the words "Beetle's Shop Ship" inscribed in Hylian. Up close, she could now see bags of supplies tied down on top of the cabin of the ship. Stepping onto the light-colored wooden deck of the floating shop, she took notice of a bright violet curtain that was currently rolled up to allow entry.

Inside the cabin there was no lights, although perhaps it was not needed, thanks to the natural moon lite night. It seemed almost cluttered inside, for it was filled with more sacks of what she guessed again to be more supplies and merchandise.

_Maybe he lives on the boat_, Reina thought, glancing at the skinny, shirtless man sitting to the left of a counter displaying goods. He resembled the man painted on the outside of the vessel.

"OHHHHH! A customer!" he exclaimed with a grin. Reina smiled back to be polite, but she wasn't so sure about this guy, he seemed a little... _eccentric_ to her.

"I have plenty of items to choose from," he told her, gesturing to the counter beside him, "and if you have anything you wish to sell, please, tell me. If I like it I may be willing to trade you a couple pretty rupees for it."

"Um, actually..."

"I've got a nice sturdy bait bag for sale right now. It comes in an adorable pig design too! It's a total bargain: only twenty rupees if you buy right now! It can hold this top grade bait as well, and it's completely all-purpose! I've seen rats and birds and all kinds of animals that would just _die _for this stuff! I've also got some _lovely _Hyoi pears today, and for you: only ten rupees. Now _that's _a bargain!"

"Excuse me!"she half-yelled above his ongoing talk.

"Yes? Is it the Hyoi pear you'd like?"

"Ugh, no. I was wondering if you could give me a ride to Windfall. It's important."

His smile faded, "Well, uh, I don't offer that kind of service."

"Please," she pleaded, "I have rupees." She took out the small brown sack filled with money from the front pocket of her dress so he could see.

He didn't seem convinced, "How much do you have?"

She opened the tiny bag and reached a finger inside, scooping out a beautifully colored purple gem. She held it in her palm, offering it to him.

He chuckled lightly, just looking at her hand. She placed it back in the bag with a frown.

"Fifty rupees may seem like a lot to a little girl like you, but it's not worth my time. Why don't you hop off and go back to your parents, maybe get some shut eye. We got a couple hours till day time, kid."

Reina stood there silently, not moving from her position in front of Beetle. He sighed a little, getting inpatient.

"Look, girl. You can buy something or leave, time is money."

"Five-hundred," she murmured.

"Come again?"

"Five-hundred rupees for a ride straight to Windfall," she specified.

His eyes seemed to bulge out of his head for a second, but he quickly regained his composure. "Deal," he agreed, reaching out to take her money. She snatched it away from him.

"Not 'till we get to Windfall," she decided, sticking the pouch back into the closed safety of her dress pocket.

He grunted but agreed. "Fine," he muttered to her, getting up and disappearing to Farore knows where, but within seconds the boat lurched forward, and she decided to step out into the open.

The familiar salty air filled her lungs as she watched the water swish along the sides of the shop ship. It was comforting in a way, she thought. The Great Sea was her home, she knew every island on the map and the depths of the water. She knew the weather of the tropic climate and the feelings it brought her. The familiarity of everything, even if just the scent of the air or the sound of ocean waves, it made her feel like she understood _something_, unlike the most of her life this past year.

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><p><strong>Yes, I know. The chapters short aaaand it took forever to update. Please don't hurt me.<strong>

**Thank you to CryBabyCry for reviewing the last chapter :)  
><strong>

**Just so you know, I'm gonna try and finish the next chapter soon. Hopefully it will work.**

**If you notice any grammatical or spelling mistakes, let me know. I'll be happy to go and fix it right away.  
><strong>


	4. Chapter 3

Reina pulled the rupees out of the pouch one at a time. A silver rupee, then another, the pretty purple one from not long ago, three yellow ones, a blue that reminded her of the charm on the necklace that circled her neck, and a total of fifteen emerald gems. It came all together in the ludicrous price of five hundred rupees, and in the back of her mind, she began to regret her decision.

"Bye! Come again!" Beetle practically sang, soaking in the sight of the colorful pile in his hand, counting the gems over and over. He waved her out and she huffed, but spun around to leave the shop's cabin, the annoyance clear on her freckled face.

Stepping onto the Windfall dock where she stood only a few hours before, she took in her surroundings. The sailors mingled with each other by the dock as they usually did, including Kane, who nodded his head in her direction when their eyes met. A group of kids ran out front behind a building on the hill, scattering out in the field in front of her. They began to toss a red ball among each other before one took off with it into the sea of buildings to her right, the others close behind him.

Reina began to walk in the general direction the boys went, striding under the tall stone bridge and stopping by a wooden post declaring "Potion Shop".

Up ahead of her- at the top of the stone stairs- stood the woman in the orange dress from the night before, only now the dress she wore was an ugly dark yellow. She nodded her head at someone Reina couldn't see, but she could tell it was a heated conversation. Deciding not to risk being caught staring at the woman, Reina continued forward, but stopped in her tracks when the lady's head moved slightly to the side, revealing who she was conversing with. It was a fair skinned lady a thin nose and lips, with pretty dark blonde hair pulled up into a bun on her head.

Reina twirled around so quickly her neck ached, her back facing the two females, and in a quick decision, she reached forward, grasping the brass door handle of the Potion Shop, and flung herself inside.

The scent of chemicals almost immediately overpowered her senses, and light danced in front of her eyes. It quickly went away, not that the room smelled any better, and she looked around. A strange man leaned against a dark wooden counter. He wore green goggles on the top of his bald head and an odd pink coat covered the majority of his body, including his neck. A toothy smile played on his lips beneath his pointy nose, and his eyes were dark and shady.

"Hello, hello, and hello!" he greeted her, "You are standing in the one and only Chu Jelly Juice Shop! You must have heard! Our potions are the best! I'm telling you! They're TOO good, in fact!... They're absolutely incredible!"

_Someone's confident,_ she thought.

"Yes, well..."

_Maybe I should bring something back for grandpa to say sorry for leaving, at least then I'll have a good excuse for leaving, _she shook her head slightly.

_No, that would be cruel, _she thought,_ Aunt Gillian would be upset with grandpa when he did nothing wrong. Anyways, she'd easily find out the real truth, and I'd be called a liar._

"So can I interest you can any of our potions?" he asked her.

_Maybe I'll just buy one anyways._

"What kinds of potions do you have?"

"My most popular item is Red Chu Jelly Juice. It is the perfect medicine if you require extra strength! I always recommend keeping at least one bottle of this on hand; you never know when you'll get into a dilemma."

"Does it work for common illness?"

"Absolutely! It's guaranteed to increase the health of whomever drinks it."

"Okay. How much is it?"

"Sixty rupees."

Reina removed the pouch from her pocket and pulled out all of her gems. She doubted she had much money left over, and she didn't, counting out one yellow and two blue rupees.

"I'm sorry, I only have twenty."

"That is quite alright, my dear. Feel free to come back when you have enough. I would give it to you on discount, but I'm afraid I need the money. Sales haven't exactly been promising as of late," he gave her a toothy smile, but she could tell in his eyes he wasn't happy about his financial status.

"I understand," she told him simply, putting her wallet away.

"Things will turn around though!" he told her optimistically, "The monster situation will pass eventually, everything does. At least I think so. Soon enough this place will be filled with customers."

She paused, "Do you know anything about the, uh... monsters?"

"What's there to know besides the fact that they've been kidnapping little girls all across the Great Sea? In fact..." he pondered for a moment, "...You're not too old to not be kidnapped. You should get home, it's not safe for you to just be wandering around the island with no one watching you."

Reina grimaced, hating the feeling of being treated like a child, "I'll go then."

"I'll walk you home if you'd like," he offered.

She shook her head, "No, that's alright. I don't live on the island."

"Then to the dock..."

"No, really. I'll be fine."

She pulled open the door, thanking the goddesses that Aunt Gillian and the woman were no longer in sight. She began to head back in the direction she had come, only once glancing over her shoulder to see the potion man (she didn't know his name) peering at her from the open door of his shop.

Once again standing in the shadow of the large stone bridge, she watched a scrawny old man in tattered clothing. He stood by a lone, towering pine tree parallel with the docks. Several of the islanders stood around him, listening to a tale, she guessed by the way he gestured his arms.

Several of his words drifted in her direction, "...at least a dozen of them! These creatures with blue skin, long ears, and a tail with an arrow head on the end! They attacked us in the dead of night! I barely had time to react! Then this giant creature swooped down from the sky and..."

He chocked back his tears and grasped a tall man by the shoulders and shook him, hollering out, "I'm just an old man! Please rescue my daughter! Please! I beg you!"

_That must be Maggie's father, _Reina guessed. Maggie and her father were always very poor. They lived on Windfall, but really didn't have a real home. They slept wherever and begged for their food, and Reina couldn't help but pity them. Especially Maggie's father now. Not only was he poor, but he lost his daughter and didn't have a single rupee to persuade anyone to rescue her, unlike the rich young girl, Mila.

"Please! Please! You don't understand! You haven't seen the bird! We're all in danger!"

The citizens of Windfall slowly backed away from the man, going to to attend to their own business. As the sun lifted higher into the sky, the old man was soon all by himself in the shade of the towering pine.

Reina crossed under the stone bridge and pass the crowded docks to where the old man stood, his depression exaggerated in even his posture. His back was curled into a hunch, his tattered clothes hanging off his shoulders, and a frown dominated the lower half of his dirt smudged face.

"Excuse me," she murmured to him, and his eyes lifted to her, "Do you know anything else about the kidnappings?"

"Know anything else? My only daughter was taken by monsters in front of my very eyes! I probably know more about these kidnappings than anyone on the island for Nayru's sake!"

"I've been looking for someone that could tell me something," she said

"Then you found the right person.

You see, on the night my daughter was taken from me, we were just falling asleep around the back side of the windmill, which is one of our regular spots. A lot of the homeless on the island argue over occupancy of the best places and when I heard sounds coming from the opposite side, I couldn't help but assume someone was trying to steal our sleeping spot. So I told Maggie, my daughter, to stay there while I went to see if someone was sneaking around, but..."

He sucked in a breath.

"But a soon as I turned my back on her, that horrible, demon bird dropped from the sky and scratched her with its talons, almost ripping her to shreds, but it missed, and its wings caught the air and brought it launching into the sky before it collided with the windmill. I watched as it spun around to go after her again, so I grabbed her by her hands, the cuts on her arms leaving blood trails down to her wrists. She was crying, so afraid, and I was scared too as I pulled her around the other side of the building.

I was going to try to get I inside where the bird couldn't get, but standing there in the clearing in front of the school house,"

He gestured to the cluster of buildings on the hill.

"Was a small army of bokoblins, at least a dozen. They had swords and clubs and we were cornered. I tried to fight them off, I really did, but... I guess they knocked me out and took her, cause when I woke up, it was light out and she was gone."

The old man whipped his tears on his sleeve, "I didn't know what to do."

Reina looked at him sadly, "I'm sorry. I wish I could do something to help you."

The man's eyes lit up slightly, "You could rescue her! A young thing like you could surely make to journey!"

"Oh...I- uh... I don't think I'm the type of person you're looking for to rescue your daughter." She stuttered.

"But you are! You're young and strong! I know you can manage it! Please! _M-my Maaaaggie needs you..._"

He grasped onto her hand forcefully, begging and crying at her. Her hand was starting to hurt.

"Plea-please let go!" she said.

"My daughter! Please save her!"

"I can't!"

The other townspeople began to look over at them with interest. Some of their faces expressed annoyance at the scene, but a few walked over.

"Hey, leave the poor girl alone. She's only a kid," a voice commanded to the old man, who dropped her hand immediately.

She looked over to see Kane standing there with his fellow sailors Candy and Gummy. Kane looked as he usually did in his signature green and blue tunics. Candy crossed his arms across his gray tunic and rolled his eyes at the old man while Gummy to his left just stood there dumbly.

"Are you alright, Reina?"

She nodded her head, "Yeah, I'm fine. Thank you."

Kane patted her golden curled hair and bent down to the old man's level so they saw eye to eye.

"I'm sorry for your daughter, sir, but don't go around scaring every kid on the island, understand?"

The old man only stared off into the distance, his mouth agape.

"Did you hear me?"

"I...I...I-I-I..."

The men slowly started to turn around, following the odd man's stare. They all began to back away from the village, eyes wide with fear.

Reina turned her gaze up to the tip of the windmill. Above its turning blades, a looming dark figure perched. In size, it was almost bigger than the towering building itself.

Feathered wings extended from the body of the shadow, and it was propelled into the sky. Up and up the figure soared until it seemed to be as high as the sun, blocking it with it's huge shape. Just like a cloud passing in front of the bright light would, a dark shadow fell across the island.

Reina looked upon its shape with a fear she hadn't felt for almost a year. Her breath caught in her chest.

The only sound her heard was her accelerating heartbeat as blinding light reappeared and she saw the creature clearly. She saw the diving figure of a bird with demonic yellow eyes that glowed beneath a porcelain white mask with accentuate violet designs. Indigo feathers covered its body with violet and white tips. Yellow and lime-green retrices extended from its tail like streamers. Its shape was enlarging and realization struck her out of her trance just in time.

She ducked, a scream escaping her lips as the bird's spear sharp talons swooped just inches from her head.

The bird screeched in irritation and prepared to strike again.

"Reina, get away from here!"

She couldn't reply, her breath coming out in pants, but she turned tail towards the city and into the shadow of the buildings. She collapsed against the outside wall of the potion shop, clutching her sides. Just as she was reaching for the door handle for the second time that day, a ear thumping _thwack _sounded from the building above her.

She held her breath, frozen on the spot. The scraping of talons on tiles clacked on the roof.

When the mask and eerie glowing orbs of the feathered creature appeared right in front of her face from the roof, she jumped out of her skin.

With a screech she dove out of the way just as the bird's razor sharp beak embedded itself it the solid walls on the potion shop, the material cracking and plaster falling to the ground. She backed away from the monster, daftly watching it try to free its weapon.

Debris flew across the narrow street as the bird wrenched itself from the stone and Reina instinctively brought her hand up to protect her face. The creature shook its head in annoyance, experimentally opening and closing its beak.

Then its eyes landed on her once again and it scrambled to jump down from the roof. When it landed, the heaviness of its steps resonated through the ground.

She was prepared to run when a small, long, but thin object darted though the air at incredible speed. The object smashed into the side of the demon's head, although it deflected off and fell broken onto the street. Snapped in half on the ground was the shape of an arrow.

The creature remained unharmed, but it was definitely distracted. It looked toward where the offending arrow was fired from, then it called out in alarm. A myriad of arrows were being slung from the roofs opposite of the Chu Jelly Juice Shop. Most of them hit the bird with deadly accuracy, but they remained unable to injure the beast. Its feathers seemed to offer it protection, like steel armor.

Before the bird could get back to the task at hand, Reina had already fled. Running faster than she had ever before, she sprinted across the suddenly deserted town.

She raced past her aunts bar, her legs burning and heart pounding against her chest like it was trying to escape. She darted past the pictograph shop, and past the school house and exited the sea of buildings and onto the hill with the single grave on the top.

She was gasping for air when she stopped, suddenly realizing the stream of tears rolling down her face. She wiped them away and clutched her sides, her entire chest burning and her blood trying to rush to her head.

She could no longer hear the shouts of men or the screeches of the bird, and she wondered if they killed it. Her question was quickly answered with the sound of beating wings from above her head, and despite her body's protests, she set her legs into motion, adrenaline pushing her forward.

She pushed herself towards the tip of the cliff and stopped at the rocky edge. Only then did she turn her head around, and was appeared to her was not what she wanted to see: glowing yellow eyes coming straight for her. So, in a last effort, she flung herself over the edge and towards the water below.

Perhaps she would miss the rocks, that if she landed on, would surely break her bones.

But she didn't have to find out, because inches away from the surface of the water, lung-crushing talons enclosed around her torso, and she was propelled into the sky.

* * *

><p><strong>Anyways, in case some of you haven't caught on, but what I've imagined is that there is more smaller islands that don't appear in the game. I don't think I've mentioned it in an author's note before.<br>**

**I _will_ update again. I can't guarantee it will be quick though.  
><strong>


	5. Chapter 4

When Reina awakened, she wasn't expecting to see dirt-covered, stone floor when she opened her eyes.

She immediately jolted upright, a loud whimper passing through her lips at the throbbing pain coming from her sides. She fell back onto the cold floor again, her head hitting the ground roughly. She groaned, her eyes clenching shut.

Her eyes fluttered back open after a few moments, but this time saw green staring back at her.

"Excuse me, are you alright?"

A young girl with light-colored hair tied back in messy pigtails leaned over her, blonde bangs framing her large eyes. She was pretty, but her childish features were pulled into an expression of fear and worry.

The girl repeated the question in her soft, bell-like voice.

Reina sighed, rubbing her hand across her face only to smear a large amount of dirt across her cheek, "I- I don't know. What- Where am I?"

Reina's eyes swept across the room again, they -Reina and the girl- appeared to be in a small jail cell of some sort, along with two other people and, oddly, about a half-dozen seagulls.

On the other side of the cell leaning against the stone wall was an expressionless girl dressed in dull-colored, ragged clothing. There were several places where her clothes appeared to be patched. Messy dark hair fell around her shoulders and covered her forehead, making her eyes barely visible. The was also a prominent, dark colored mole to the left of her nose.

Secluded from the other girls was a tall, regal-looking female garbed in an extravagant and very elegant looking pink dress with perfect white ruffles aligning the sleeves and neckline. Bright and glimmering crystals decorated her ears and strawberry blonde hair. She stood up straight, her posture adding more to her air of sophistication, but even as the girl's back was turned, Reina could hear soft weeping coming from her direction.

"If I knew, I would tell you," the girl smiled sadly, despite the situation.

It was silent for a few seconds before the girl spoke again, "What's your name?"

"...Reina," she answered after a moment's hesitation.

The girl smiled again, light pink dusting her cheeks, "I'm Aryll."

"Pretty."

"Oh, thank you."

A seagull skittered between them to peck at some nameless object between a crack in the floor before flapping towards Aryll, who ran a finger over the bird's back.

Reina gave the girl an amused look at the creature's strange actions. She had never known any kind of bird to be so social with people.

"What's with all the seagulls?" she asked, looking at the several other feathered animals parading around the cell.

"They're my friends," she replied as the bird fluttered away from her and through the wooden bars of the cage. Reina watched it fly up towards the open ceiling then land on a part of the long staircase leading up, probably to look for something to eat.

"They followed me when I was kidnapped."

"How long have you been here?" Reina asked.

"Oh, not that long," Aryll assured her, "Only a little before you got here. An hour or so maybe? I don't know what time it is, but," she gestured to the giant open ceiling through the bars of the cell. Little specks of light glittered across the black sky, "It's nighttime now."

As Reina peered at the shining night sky far above the little cage, realization of the situation dawned upon her. The familiar lump formed in her throat and wet tears began to roll down her cheeks.

Aryll's face saddened at Reina's sudden reaction and immediately Reina went to cover her face with her hands.

All she could think about was how stupid she was for climbing out her bedroom window that morning. She could have just stayed home with grandpa that day, building puzzles or listening to stories. What was so wrong with that? Why did she have to run off? They were probably worried sick. No doubt they knew about it. Everyone of Windfall knew.

She felt petite arms wrap around her torso.

"I'm really sorry, Reina," came her tiny voice, and Reina sobbed harder in spite of herself.

"We'll get out of here. All of us," Aryll said, referring to the other girls in the cell, "You see, my brother is really strong and brave. He's probably on his way to rescue me right now, and he'll save you guys too."

"Your brother? How do you know?" Reina asked, chocking back her tears the best she could.

"I just do," was her reply, and she smiled.

Aryll reached out to sympathetically brush Reina's golden hair away from her face, "Are you hungry?" she suddenly asked, "They brought food earlier while you were asleep."

She reached behind her to lift up a cracked gray bowl filled with a substance that looked like porridge or oatmeal, but it looked more soupy and watery than anything else, so Reina wasn't sure, but she reached for the little silver spoon that rested against the side of the bowl anyways and was relieved to find it didn't really have a taste.

"Maybe we should try and get out of here on our own," Reina said after a few spoonfuls.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean we try and come up with an escape plan-" Reina began, but closed her mouth when the creaking sound of the door caught her attention, and she turned to see two green skinned monsters shuffle into the room with cutlasses on their hips.

The pair marched to parallel positions a few feet away from the door and stood post there, slit eyes glaring at the four girls locked up across the room. Occasionally they'd murmur something to the other in their unfamiliar language, receiving a snorty chuckle or a roll of the eyes in return.

Reina kept quiet for the time that they were there, spending that time finishing off the tasteless slop that Aryll had given her. Eventually the bowl was empty and she pushed it towards the edge of the cell where it'd be out of the way.

After a few long minutes, one of the bokoblins mumbled a phrase its partner with a snort and the duo reopened the door and headed back out into the night.

When the door closed with a loud thud, Aryll turned to Reina once again, "They patrol in here every few minutes. I guess to make sure we're not doing anything bad."

"I'm assuming that includes trying to escape."

"...Yeah...You mean," Aryll pondered at her, "You have a plan?"

The elegant looking blonde in the corner turned in head in interest.

"Well..."Reina said slowly, "You said they patrol in here every few minutes, right?"

"Yes."

"...I might have an idea."

The tall female turned around to glare at Reina, who couldn't help but notice the large and expensive looking scarlet pebble on the neckline of her dress.

"You better not be joking!" the girl warned her, her eyes lighting up,"You two just got here, so you don't understand!

"Maggie and I have been locked in this goddess forsaken jail cell for days!" she hissed, her eyes meeting with the rag-clothed child leaning against the wall when she mentioned the name, _Maggie, _"If you really have a plan, say so, but if you're not serious, keep it to yourself."

"_Maggie_," Reina murmured, eyes meeting the brunette's, whose eyebrows appeared to raise underneath her thick bangs. Her gaze returned to the princess-like blonde, "You couldn't be Mila, could you?"

The blonde seemed disgusted to have someone of a class lower than herself speaking her name, but answered, "Yes, that is right."

Reina nodded her head, "I heard about your kidnapping not long ago."

"Well of course you have," Mila said, "My family's the richest and most well-known family in the Great Sea, but really, back to the _escape plan_, please."

"Okay, well, here's my idea."

* * *

><p><strong>Wheeeee~ I updated!<strong>

**This is also on deviantART now, so if you wish to view it there, just send me a pm and I'll give you my username :)  
><strong>

**Sorry this chapter is so short, but I plan to upload the next chapter soon to make up for it.  
><strong>

**Please review, I wish to improve :)  
><strong>

**If you notice any grammatical or spelling mistakes, please please please let me know!  
><strong>


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